bla_bla

are there different kinds of diplomatic passports e.g. issued by un, issued by individual country for ambassadors etc?

what differences do they make? i would imagine you get to go through immigration at a separate, designated point?

SchmeckFlyer

I do not have one, but know three people who do. In the US, two types of official passports are issued: diplomatic (black) and official (red).

It basically can only be used for official or authorized travel related to duties representing a state abroad, or the carrying out of duties by a government employee while abroad. When traveling for personal reasons or not in the function of representing a foreign state, a normal/personal passport (usually) must be employeed. The often-held idea that holders of diplomatic passports can travel around risk-free and untouched may actually be incorrect in that regard.

The main benefit of a diplomatic passport, however, seems to be that when traveling on one, authorities cannot search baggage or hinder the entry of the passport holder. Many airports have diplomatic channels at customs/immigration. I suppose this falls under the old diplomatic immunity privileges enjoyed by foreign representatives.

Upon cessation of official duties, a diplomatic or official passport will expire. Only former prominent government officials (ex-head of states, cabinet members) customarily receive a coutesy diplomatic passport after ending their official duties.

sany2

A number of my family members have had different types of (Indian) passports.

One had a diplomatic, regular, official, and UN diplomatic and official passport, depending on what authority he was operating under.

Countries do not have to allow entry of a diplomat, only diplomats of country they have reciprocal agreements with.

In India, at least, the family member has since retired, and no longer has an official or diplomatic passport, but is not subject to security measures in Indian airports.

He also (and this is not official, it is only sometimes) receives preferential treatment by Air India, including free upgrades at times, and access to VIP lounges.

The direct family of this diplomat also received official passports to use when visiting him when we was living outside of the country (on UN business).

B747-437B

Common misconception. If there is ever a question about the IDENTITY of the holder of the passport, then diplomatic priviledges do not apply (and the pax can be detained and/or searched) until positive proof of identity can be provided. This rarely happens in case of genuine diplomats, but fake diplomatic passports from places like Swaziland, DR Congo, etc... are pretty easy to pick up on the black market.

everywhere

Australian Diplomatic passports do not entitle their holders to priority immigration, and in NZ the officers at the priority designated point for APEC Business card holders are not appreciative of processing diplomatic passport holders.

For Immunity privileges in New Zealand foreign diplomats receive a card issued by the New Zealand police force for establishing their status (IE that they cannot be arrested).

trekkie

in general, diplomatic passports usually means less questions at the immigration counter and at countries where there may be one or 2 "suspicious" immigration people that insist on copying your passport details, they are generally not allowed to. In some cases where there airport police and the state department has been been given advance notice, you might get a police escort to your car.

puck

I have a UN laissez-passer. The only real advantage is that for official trips, the required visas are taken care of by the protocol department directly with the embassy, there is no fee, and the visa and stamp don't take up space in your national passport. The laissez-passer is only valid accompanied by a national passport, and while a few airports have "diplomat" channels at immigration, the vast majority don't.

Rumors abound about airlines that give upgrades to those on a diplomatic passport, but I personally haven't witnessed any proof of that!

bla_bla

how did you acquire the laissez-passer passport? do you work for the un? is there an even better grade of diplomatic passport?

jpatokal

This may be true for the US, but is not correct for many countries. For example, the dependents of diplomats (read: wife and kids) also get diplomatic passports and can use them for all travel.

Basically true, but things are a little more complex in practice. For example, assume that a country has on-arrival visas that cost money: a diplomat can't just walk up and get it free, they have to apply in advance for their gratis visa. Also, in many dodgier countries, while J. Random Backpacker can pass through immigration relatively painlessly, Z. Distinguished Diplomat is not going to go through that immigration post until the border control guys call up their superiors, establish where this fellow is going, wake up the agents that will follow on his trail, etc. Also, while a diplomat may choose to insist on inviolability, when dealing with your average TSA goon it's a lot less hassle to let him go ahead and search your bags instead of launching into a diatribe about the Vienna Convention.

Strictly speaking you are correct, but a diplomatic passport is effectively a license to use any crew/VIP desks that the airport may have, and any legit holder will have the attitude and negotiation skills necessary to override any complaints

Seems a little unnecessary as most diplomats on assignment rack up status and huge mileage anyway -- I wonder how many there are lurking on FT?

GUWonder

It depends from country to country. A lot of dependents of diplomats have a standard passport from their home country with a visa that shows them to be a dependent of a foreign government official, diplomat or what not.

Most diplomats I know have no frequent flyer elite status.

alanwar

There is a related question that I have; do these diplomatic passports also imply diplomatic immunity ? Are they a literal get out of jail free cards ?

A friend told me a story about his buddy who got stopped on the NYS thruway going 120mph in a car with diplomatic plates. State trooper stopped him and said to him I don't know what to do with you because of these plates. He replied you aren't supposed to stop me at all you fool and then drove off.

nomad1974

I love all this speculation. No offence, please, but I wonder how many actually have first hand knowledge about what you write. As a matter of fact I am the holder of a diplomatic passport as - surprise, surprise - I am a diplomat.

Honestly? It's not a big deal at all and highly overrated.

First: We are only allowed to use it when travelling on an official trip, i.e. never on leisure trips. However, this varies from country to country, meaning in many countries holders of diplomatic passports do not have regular passports, too. It also depends on whether you are based at home or one based abroad, i.e. accredited to another country or an international organisation. In the latter case, it is more likely that you'd be allowed to travel at all times on your diplomatic passport.

Second: A diplomatic passport does NOT necessarily guarantee entry anywhere. For example, in many cases visa requirements are the same for both diplomatic and regular passport holders (prime example, the USA). However, it is true that in some cases, where regular passport holders from country A require a visa to enter country B, diplomatic passport holders from A do not.

Third: All the stuff about customs etc is simply not true. This only applies to people accredited to a country, in the country where they serve. All the rest of us and in all the other countries are subject to normal customes rules.

Fourth: Yes, sooometimes there are separate immigration desks, but these are few and far between. I have so far only seen them at FRA (but not everywhere), ATH (though the queue was actually longer) and NRT.

Fifth: No special treatment really at airline lounges, no upgrades, nothing. These things go to the people with the colourful cards - as it should be

Sixth: Honestly, I have found sometimes that going through immigration with a diplomatic passport is slower. Why? Because it is different, it often intrigues agents and makes them look through it just that bit longer. So now, within the EU, official trip or not, I travel with my ID only!

GUWonder

A few friends of mine with diplomatic immunity get tickets in the US, but they have the option to pay. But protocol has it -- in a few cases -- that they submit the ticket to their embassy staff and then the embassy pays half the fine as a goodwill gesture. That's not how it always works but that is what happens in some cases too.

If you want to get away with a speeding ticket, having a car with a license plate from another country AND/or a driver's license from another country is sufficient for the government authorities who generally pursue such matters to drop the matter since it's not worth their time or within their resources to pursue such matters routinely to collect fines from an out-of-country registered car/driver. No diplomatic immunity needed. (That said, some states -- including in the US -- and some countries mandate payment of fine before being released by the police.)

Diplomats share the immigration line with crew, PIOs and one or two other categories at DEL also.

GUWonder

Diplomatic status is not a get out of jail free card. And countries -- under political/public pressure -- have discarded their diplomat's own immunity on more than one occassion.

alanh

Even if a country won't waive immunity, the host country still has the right to deport the offender. This causes some embarassment and work for the guest country to replace the position.